Max Planck Foundation organised study visit for staff of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights
The Foundation organised a three-day study visit for the staff of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, which was carried out from 13–17 June 2016 in the framework of a capacity development project. The project is funded by the German Foreign Office and implemented by the Max Planck Foundation. The project aims at providing support to the implementation of the Strategy for Preventing and Combating Discrimination in Ukraine.
The Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights is a national human rights institution in Ukraine, which is in charge of the implementation of the Strategy for Preventing and Combating Discrimination. Recently appointed staff of the Office requires external assistance in order to enhance their international contacts and to improve their professional capabilities.
On the first day of the study visit, the Ukrainian delegation visited the Max Planck Foundation in Heidelberg, where a meeting with the Foundation’s management and senior staff took place. After this meeting, the delegation visited the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe, where they met a German Judge and extensively discussed the competencies of the Court and its jurisprudence in the area of non-discrimination and equality.
On the second day of the visit, the delegation travelled to Berlin, where they met the German Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces. The Commissioner delivered a detailed presentation on the functioning of the Office and paid considerable attention to contemporary challenges. While doing so, the Commissioner focused on two main tasks of the Office: safeguarding basic rights and assisting the Bundestag in exercising parliamentary oversight of the armed forces.
On the third day of the visit, the delegation met with the staff of the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency in Berlin. A staff member of the Agency delivered a presentation on the structure and competencies of the Agency. The participants discussed the scope and application of the German Law on Equal Treatment. The Agency’s staff provided practical insights into their work and addressed the means employed to prevent discriminatory practices in Germany.